The asylum status holder did not complete the civic integration process within the legal deadline. Therefore, she was fined in 2019 and had to repay the loan for the integration. The woman appealed to the Council of State (RvS) in 2024.
The procedure referred to recent rulings by the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) and the RvS from 2025. According to these rulings, systematically imposing fines for failing to meet the civic integration obligation on time for asylum status holders conflicts with European regulations. This also applies to reclaiming loans. The RvS has now determined that these rulings also affect previously imposed and finalized decisions regarding fines and loan recovery under the 2013 Civic Integration Act. The Council also ruled that the fine for this asylum status holder is annulled and she does not have to repay the loan.
Follow-up
The ruling states that it is up to SZW to determine what this ruling means for other cases where a fine was imposed or where it was decided that the loan must be repaid. The ministry is studying the RvS ruling and its consequences.
SZW had already paused the collection of fines and loan recovery from asylum status holders since March 2023. At that time, the RvS had asked questions to the CJEU about the fine and loan policy of the 2013 Civic Integration Act. After the RvS ruling in July 2025, imposing fines on asylum status holders for exceeding the deadline under the 2013 and 2021 Civic Integration Acts was stopped. Additionally, loan recovery for asylum status holders under the 2013 Act was also stopped.
More information
The ruling can be found on the Council of State website.